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“Strength in Weakness”
II Corinthians 11:30-31, 12:2-20; Mark 6:1-13
Rev. Sandy Nuernberg
Oakland-Cambridge Presbyterian Church, Cambridge, WI
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time -
Celebration of Small Churches
July 9, 2006
When I was a seminary student, we
were required in my ‘Reflection on Ministry’ class to participate for an
academic year (Sept.-May) with on-sight ministry; a church, a non-profit agency,
or a corporation involving active ministry. I was in a small congregation in
Madison that had received a grant to assist them in accepting a student pastor.
Through these wonderful and challenging experiences, God opened my eyes and my
heart to small church ministry.
I was full of trepidation because
my co-pastor student friends were all in the Chicago area, and as a lifer in the
PC(USA), I had only been a member of three (3) churches and they were all over
375 members. Dale Heights Church in Madison had fewer members but was then and
still is the most diverse congregation in our Presbytery, and did they ever have
big hearts for local mission, as well as a history of being faithful disciples
in the service of Christ Jesus! As I watched and participated with them, I was
amazed and in awe at how the power of the Holy Spirit was active in their church
lives.
One awareness, or ‘eye-opener’,
for me, of their activities was maybe what they did not have; they do not have
deacons, as such, as the church calls these gifted leaders. But, as I learned,
each and every member is a deacon all the time, every day of the year. They were
individually empowered by the Holy Spirit to care for, nurture, and nourish
their members in ways of visiting each other, hearing and addressing the needs
/concerns of one another, listening for ways in which the church could respond.
For me, what I especially enjoyed
was observing their love for one another and the joy that radiated in each of
them as they carried out the mission responsibilities in their neighborhood and
community. Activities I remember well are a sweltering hot August chicken
barbecue for the public held in the basement with every member participating; an
outdoor worship service in the church yard with music and celebration being
together; the pastor’s wife teaching a class for egg-painting and our decorated
eggs as part of the sanctuary adornment at Eastertide.
Even with limited resources in
their size they were witnessing to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their pastor and
lay persons, and youth demonstrated God’s grace sufficiently to allow them to
risk engaging in mission and ministry in their deeds in different ways so that
their congregation could flourish. Today, in reflection, I believe it was a
great happening for me to be touched by our witness to Christ’s redeeming love
and grace.
In our lectionary texts for today
in Mark’s Gospel and in II Corinthians, we are witnessing to God’s strength and
power in the leadership of Paul, Jesus, and the disciples; mostly it is God’s
grace and love in sharing our leadership gifts within our church and in our
community. What it really is for us is God’s strength and power in numbers–small
numbers to accomplish amazing things–amazing things in our own neighborhood!
Yes, we are celebrating small church ministry today in our denomination.
The disciples, as well as those
following Jesus were astounded by his deeds of power, his strength, and his
faithfulness in accomplishing miraculous tasks. But in Nazareth, his hometown,
Jesus had to show them. We have heard the adage’ ‘familiarity breeds contempt’;
Jesus was so powerful, yet his own deeds were being questioned; his family, his
neighbors unbelief was amazing to Jesus. Have we heard of this in our own
communities, today? For various reasons, they are leaders, but are not
recognized. Jesus tells his disciples to have faith, to look the part–don’t take
money, wear sandals, and walk with a staff!! Perhaps, Jesus could have asked, ‘
Is your power and strength in your weakness of belief?’
Our text tells us Jesus taught
them in the synagogue, he had wisdom to take the disciples two-by-two (as
missionaries!) to meet and teach others, and gave these leaders authority to
proclaim who God was and what Christ was about. Jesus did this through God’s
power.
The Apostle Paul tells in our text
of another spiritually significant experience, quite detailed, as to where and
when–fourteen (14) years ago and in heaven! But the power of his experience is
that the grace of God was sufficient for Paul in his weakness. Scholars, it
seems, believe that Paul was indeed describing himself here, in receiving a
‘thorn in the flesh’ to kind of ‘wake him up’ to reality; literally he boasts as
to how weak he is–insults, hardships, persecutions, calamities–it sure sounds
like Paul to me! Does it to you?
Paul was stricken with divine
strength in his weakest of moments and he surrendered. You see, Paul’s
counterparts, his rivals were religious junkies and they ridiculed and
threatened Paul, while Paul was faithful, and his success was not by his own
doing, but by the power/strength of God. He kept going and going on his mission,
and was strengthened, just like the Ever-Ready battery!!
It is not any great news for us in
the Presbyterian church to know that we are a denomination of small churches. I
am so very glad to be a pastor in one church, our church, that is of the
two-thirds of our congregations nationally that report an average attendance at
worship of one-hundred or fewer. Like Paul, I may or may not be boasting (!!)
but I am finding we are a church of quality and not quantity! And
that is right where I fit–I come from a profession in the hospital where
quality results ( in laboratory testing ) are paramount in diagnosis of
disease, not the quantity of tests that we accomplish, daily or yearly.
I realize that
small churches are big in number in the PC(USA), 46%, but for me it is the
strength in these churches that makes them successful. In a recent
Presbyterians Today ( July/August, 2005) issue ( our denomination’s
magazine), statistics show that small churches like Oakland-Cambridge Church
provide not less than five strengths ( from ten) on average more so than
large churches–helping worshipers grow spiritually, actively involving many
worshipers, providing a strong sense of belonging, sharing faith with others,
and empowering many people as leaders. Think where we are in our church in each
of these categories; let’s smile together!! We can provide strong faith
communities, can’t we? We are!!
The theme in all five of these
strengths suggests worshipers in small congregations are more connected–to
each other, to the congregation, and to their faith. I would like to add to
these, connected to the community, because we are, and after a time of
hard work together and ‘showing us and our talents off ’ that it is our further
goal; it is one reason I was asked to be received by you, as your new pastor. I
am thrilled to get everyone involved in being the church and being more
connected in the community. We can accomplish all things, we know, as we are led
by God’s Holy Spirit.
The good news of the gospel is
that our strength comes from God’s power and strength; our leadership is one to
another in all we are and do. We, like the disciples in Jesus’ time, may be
small in number but we have big, active, and ‘watermelon sized ’ hearts for
others. I have observed this for two weeks and will for a long time to come, I
know, as the Spirit of the living, loving God leads us. We can provide worship,
prayer, mission activities and care for our members that speaks to us
individually, collectively, connectedly as the church, the Body of Christ. Size
alone does not determine a congregation’s success; nor does one strength alone.
Being effective, being accountable in today’s complex and rapidly changing world
requires multiple strengths. God’s strength within us can surmount any
weaknesses we come upon and together we can shine in being an extra-ordinarily
connected congregation.
THIS IS THE WORD
OF THE LORD. THANKS BE TO GOD. AMEN.
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